The present invention relates to a punching balloon game, and more particularly to a portable support for such a game.
It is known to provide supports for punching balloon games for outdoor recreation areas, such as public parks and school yards. These punching balloon supports are made from a tubular steel structure, for example cross-sectionally square, rectangular or circular. Such supports comprise a pair of upright, parallel posts that are spacedly and fixedly inserted in the ground in a permanent fashion: they are usually driven into the ground, and are often fixed by means of a concrete base poured around them, for preventing the posts from accidental displacement or theft.
The posts are linked at their upper extremities by a transverse cylindrical crossbar, integrally fixed to the posts. The crossbar is provided near its central portion with an annular ball bearing, welded thereon, that allows a ring attached thereto to rotate around the crossbar.
A punching balloon can be securely and removably attached to the rotatable ring to allow the punching balloon game to be accomplished. Basically, the game is played with two players, and consists of making a balloon rotate around the horizontal rotatable ring.
The punching ball consists of a resistent flexible bag, e.g made of leather, of the air-filled pneumatic type, and having a pear shape. The ball comprises a strap attached to the rotatable ring and initially freely hangs under the crossbar. The game consists in manually hitting the ball tangentially, relative to the cylindrical crossbar, to bring the ball into rotation around the crossbar. A pair of players can play the game, each of the players alternately hitting the ball in tangentially opposite directions until one of them misses the ball. A number of different rules can be applied to offer a variety of games to be played with the punching ball.
The problem with these known devices is that the permanent support required to hold the ball is not available at any desired location. Indeed, only a small number of outdoor public areas are provided with such supports, so that use on the beach or on a camping ground is not possible. Also, the support usually has to be fixedly installed into the ground by pouring concrete around the upright posts, which may discourage the installation thereof, due to the complexity of the operation and to the permanent aspect of the installation. Indoor installation of the support is especially undesirable, since piercing of the floor is necessary to hold the upright posts.
Among the known punching balloon support systems, there exists one embodiment known to the present applicant that has been distributed in Quxc3xa9bec market at a very small scale. The trademark or manufacturer""s name thereof are not known. In this known balloon support system, the upright post are adjustable in length, so as to enable concurrent adjustment of the height of the top horizontal bar. The ground base consists of a small rectangular steel plate welded to the lower part of each upright post, and having two through bores for engagement therethrough of anchoring screws. The height adjustment of the top horizontal bar is enabled by a set screw engaged into a nut welded in alignment with one bore made in the upper part of the lower upright posts, to enable the tightening of the arch posts. A drawback of such a height adjustment system, is that a number of tools are required to perform the adjustments. However, such known balloon support system is still of the permanent ground anchoring type.
It is thus the gist of the present invention to provide a portable punching ball support that allows the punching balloon game to be played at any desired location, including indoor locations.
It is an important object of the invention that the support assembly and disassembly be easy to perform by most persons, without requiring specific tools or proficiencies, for easy storage and carrying of the support.
A further object of the invention is to provide such a support, wherein the replacement of worn or damaged parts will be very easy and convenient.
Another object of the invention is that the punching balloon support system can be collapsed in a compact, flattened structure that can facilitate shipping and storage.
In accordance with the objects of the invention, there is disclosed an improved punching balloon support system, which will increase the appeal of the game and its user-base while eliminating the prior art drawbacks, namely:
by eliminating the permanent ground anchoring thereof;
by using the weight of the players at the base of the support to stabilize the support;
to use state of the art materials which are light and sturdy;
to be able to use this movable support system both outdoors and indoors;
to be able to adjust the height of its top balloon supporting horizontal bar, without any tool other than the user""s hands;
to enable easy and compact storage of the support parts within its general structure;
to facilitate handling and shipping thereof by an adult or children alike;
to promote a safe use thereof.
More specifically, the invention relates to a balloon support system for playing a punching balloon game, such system comprising: a movable ground base, a tubular planar arch member defining two upright legs and a top-elongated transverse crossbar integral at opposite ends thereof to said upright legs, the bottom ends of said upright legs being anchored to said ground base; a rotatable balloon mount, installed to an intermediate section of said top web for rotatably carrying a balloon thereon; an elongated pivotal arm member, pivotally mounted at an inner end thereof to said ground base for pivotal movement between a first position, generally parallel to said arch member, and a second ground engaging position, extending transversely from the plane of said arch member; and a foot support panel member, fixedly mounted to an outer end portion of said pivotal arm member for movement therewith, and including a foot rest surface, said foot rest surface adapted to support a user""s foot upon said pivotal arm member being in its said second position; wherein upon the user hitting the balloon for rotation of the latter around said arch member top web, weight loading of the user""s foot onto said foot support panel member anchors the support system in position over ground.
There could be added a second pivotal arm member, pivotally mounted to said ground base between a first position, generally parallel to said arch member but on the side thereof opposite the first mentioned pivotal member in its said first position, and a second ground engaging position, extending transversely from said arch member away in a direction generally opposite the first mentioned pivotal member in the latter said second position; and a corresponding second foot support panel member, fixedly mounted to an outer end portion of said second pivotal arm member for movement therewith, and including a second foot rest surface, said second foot rest surface adapted to support a second user""s foot when the second user hits the balloon alternately with the first user for rotation of the latter in alternate directions around said arch member top web; wherein weight loading distribution of the two users"" feet onto the two opposite said foot support panel members, stabilizes the support system during the full of the ball punching play.
Preferably, said first and second foot support panel members extend in coplanar fashion with one another in said second position of said first and second pivotal arm members.
It is envisioned to provide a lock member, rotatably mounted to the lower part of at least one of said arch member upright legs and cooperating with said first and second pivotal arm members, said lock member including a seat member wherein said lock member is hand rotatable between an inoperative position, where said seat member clears said first and second pivotal arm members for enabling free pivotal motion of said first and second pivotal arm members, and an operative position, wherein said seat member abuttingly engages said first and second pivotal arm members for locking said first and second pivotal arm members in their said second ground engaging position.
Preferably then, each one of said pivotal arm members consists of an elongated bar with a pivotal mount at its inner end; wherein there are two said lock members. each consisting of a conical base having a diametrally smallest top end and a diametrally largest bottom end and a tubular lengthwise through bore, slidingly engaged by said lower part of corresponding arch member upright leg, said seat member consisting of a notch formed at a peripheral edge section of the diametrally largest lower section of said conical base, and a sector-shape cavity made lengthwisely of said conical base for pivotal engagement therein of said pivotal arm member elongated bar in said first position thereof; whereby said conical base provides a counteracting structure to compensate for moments of force generated at said ground base by the user""s fist impacting blows sustained by said balloon and top cross-bar.
Each of said arch member upright legs could include separable lower and upper telescoping parts, and there would then further include: a tubular extension member, interconnecting said lower and upper parts of each arch member upright legs; a length-adjustment member, mounted to the upper section of said arch member lower part and cooperating with said tubular lower extension member and said lower part of said arch member upper part and including an outer hand-rotatable knob, for enabling toolless manual engagement and disengagement of said length-adjustment member releasably interlocking said upper and lower arch member parts and said extension member.
Preferably, said extension members extend downwardly, abuttingly releasably engaging the top ends of the corresponding said conical bases, so as to provide downward bias against said conical bases to bear against said pivotal arm members when the latter occupy their ground engaging positions, to prevent accidental lifting of said pivotal arm members during punching ball play.